Copper ... It's Back

Gold gets all the attention, but copper has staged a pretty remarkable recovery from its early summer lows. After bottoming out below $2.80 a pound, the December contract is near $3.70 and the highs of 2008 are in sight. Considering just how useful copper is in so many industrial, construction and communications applications, an ongoing global economic recovery should be a solid demand driver.

Most of the major copper producers have already run up in concert with the price of the metal, but investors may want a refresher course on the major players with an eye toward buying the inevitable dips.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE: FCX)
These are the fat times for Freeport-McMoRan, as this company is not only a major copper producer, but a major gold miner as well. At current prices, the 83 billion pounds of copper and nearly 34 million ounces of gold in Freeport's reserves are worth over $800 per share. Of course, that does not include the costs of extracting those resources (nor the risk of lower future prices), but it should give investors a sense of the magnitude of Freeport's resources. Freeport has long since diversified its reliance upon its Indonesia mine to a tolerable level, and the company produces more than 10% of the world's annual copper output. (For more, see Taking A Shine To Copper.)

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